26 Feb 2012 - QA 10

Guruji, when our work gets done by your grace we feel grateful to you but when what we want does not happen then we become sad and miserable. Why is it like that?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That is why when you are miserable have the strength to let go. When your work gets done, be grateful and do some seva. Seva purifies our karma.
Charity purifies the money that you earn. At least three to four percent of what you earn should be given away in charity. A spoonful of ghee purifies food.
There is a proverb in India, ’a spoonful of ghee (clarified butter) on rice purifies the rice.’
You know why? This is because if you eat rice just like that it digests very fast and becomes sugar very quickly. Many people who eat rice like that, they become diabetics.
A cardiologist told me, anytime you take cereals you should have a little bit of fat with it. A spoon of ghee on top of it slows down the digestion. It becomes complex carbohydrates and helps to balance the sugar level in the body and that helps a healthy heart function.
That is why the ancient people had said this, ‘a spoon of ghee purifies the rice.’
Similarly, with music the emotions get purified. So everyone must sing, it does not matter if you are singing a movie song but sing. A little bit of singing purifies the emotions.
Then with knowledge the intellect gets purified. You need to have knowledge. What is knowledge? What we have been discussing here.
Then, meditation purifies the soul and Ayurveda purifies the body. When we take Triphala two or three times a week, the stomach gets cleaned and the mind becomes clear.
A saint used to say, warm feet, a soft stomach and a cool head, this is the sign of a healthy person.
But if it is opposite, feet are cold, stomach is hard and head is hot, it is a sign of unhealthiness.
For the stomach to be light and clean you need Ayurveda. You keep eating something or the other throughout the day and this has an effect on the body. So to cleanse the body, Ayurveda is essential.
Through yoga and pranayama also body gets cleansed.